Awards season is something I look forward to every year. I love seeing who will win, the performances and the famous people crying on stage. I’m pretty sure on more than one occasion, I’ve spent hours just watching acceptance speeches on YouTube because they make me feel some sort of weird happiness bubbling inside.
While waiting for these award shows to happen, or even if I miss it and look up the highlights later on, I can’t help but notice how much we pay attention to the red carpet. Sometimes, even more so than the award show itself.
In case you’re confused about what goes on at the red carpet, here’s a short summary: celebrities stroll down it with their glamorous outfits, and in a way, it’s the show before the show. It’s become such a normal thing that I don’t even think twice about it.
I automatically start to judge dresses, and my curiosity grows about who is wearing what. Year after year, we see women being criticized for their outfit, hair, makeup, bag and shoes. The list goes on. There are articles with dozens of photos and videos discussing every dress and comparing body types and hairstyles. It is, of course, not only women who are scrutinized, but men as well, just on a much smaller scale.
Men only tend to come up in regard to fashion when they’ve worn something out-of-the-ordinary on the red carpet (i.e. Pharrell Williams’ infamous hat). Other than that, when men step onto the red carpet, I mostly see that they’re asked casually about what they wear and then move onto other questions regarding their work or how they feel about being nominated.
Somehow, society believes that this is appropriate to judge harshly on looks because these women (and men) have signed up for it. It comes with the fame is what we can claim. What a truly ridiculous society we live in. I know that over the years, I too have played into this hype, but it stops now.
This award season more than ever, things began to change when it came to red carpet behavior. Women on the red carpet, such as Amy Poehler, are deciding to stand up against this behavior. She started a conversation through her Smart Girls campaign. Others used the hashtag #AskHerMore to encourage red carpet reporters to ask better questions.
People are deciding to make statements bigger than just the designer they’re choosing to wear. Award shows have always been more than just celebrating achievements. Celebrities have taken time to promote causes they believe in or stand up against injustice. Now it seems that they are bringing this approach to the red carpet.
Of course, this isn’t to knock fashion. Fashion is indeed an important art and should be appreciated. The red carpet is an appropriate time for that, but the red carpet is also more than that.
Critics of these changing times point out that stars earn something out of the criticism they endure. Many who perform well on the red carpet (pick the right flattering outfits) will go on to land deals with brand name companies. But at what price?
By allowing this destructive trend of judgment on the red carpet to continue, we set a bad example to children everywhere. We show them that the world we live in is based on looks. You matter because of what you wear, not because of who you are.
Little girls and boys across the world will put self worth into their shiny new shoes and pretty petticoats instead of channeling compliments about one another’s good deeds or achievements.
I don’t know about you, but that’s not a sort of message that I can condone any longer. I, as much as any other person, appreciate a good outfit. I enjoy seeing what’s in style and the many types of beauty portrayed on the red carpet.
However, I also want to know more about the person in the outfit. I care about the work that they’ve done, how talented they are and how they’ll use their fame in a positive way. I want to know more about the roles they’ve played and how their work will impact our future.
So yes, celebrities are made to be in the spotlight. We, as the public, get to choose what sort of spotlight we shine on them. Right now, it seems like we’re shining a spotlight of cruelty. It almost feels like the “fashion police” from every network are in a competition of who can be the meanest, making snarky comments.
As this award season has come to a close, I hope people decide to reflect on the changes that have been brought up concerning behavior on the red carpet. I look forward to hearing more about a woman’s work than what a woman chooses to wear.
